National Transport Insurance (NTI) is going for a blockchain trial which if successful would benefit food safety, improve animal welfare and monitor export security for Australian beef.

The responsibility for deployment of the blockchain has come on the shoulders of BeefLedger, an Australian integrated provenance, blockchain security, and payments platform. The firm would deploy a pilot initiative this month that tracks the paddock-to-plate journey of premium Australian beef abroad.

The initiative aims to improve upon the product credentials and supply chain performance, through the multiple layers of diverse technologies that would eventually deliver the product security and credentialing.

The latest endeavor would see the blockchain platform monitoring premium live cattle being transported from South Australia’s Limestone Coast to the processing facility in New South Wales and later frozen and transported to Shanghai for consumption.

NTI CEO Tony Clark says,

“We’re excited by the prospects this presents across several streams of Australian industry: agriculture, animal welfare, transport and logistics,While it’s early stages, we’re optimistic of the outcomes and learning, and what it potentially means for Australian suppliers, exporters and consumers.”

A Major Step in Revolutionizing the Beef Industry

Australia holds the distinction of being the third-largest beef producer in the world. The Beef industry also plays a very integral part in the Australian economy, with 45,000 cattle producers actively contributing towards the position it holds today.

The rise in wealth across Asia has resulted in an increased demand for quality imported beef. The surge in demand for quality husbandry products would lead to the risk of counterfeiting and poor safety standards. Thus, incorporating a decentralized platform in the demand-supply chain would lead to better quality food products and also avoid the chances of any parallel black market.

BeefLedger BeefLedger chairman Warwick Powell says,

“Research shows us that ethical standards and concerns for animal welfare, along with authenticity and proof of product origin, are amongst the top priorities for Chinese consumers. It’s also what’s driving consumer interest in Australian products,”

Blockchain Finds Real World Use Case in Food supply Industries

The latest move by NTI to incorporate the best of the blockchain technology in the food catering and supply business is not the first time someone has turned towards a more decentralized path. Earlier we have reported how China is gearing up to implement Blockchain to solve their food and drug safety issues. The government agencies in the wake of a scandal related to rabies vaccine have tightened their noose around suppliers. By implementing the distributed ledger, China is hoping to avoid such blunders in the future.

Apart from China, Switzerland is another primary name who have incorporated blockchain in the food sector to deliver quality seafood. Gustav Gerig, the Swiss food manufacturer, announced that it would use the Distributed ledger network to verify the seafood from the place of its origin to the consumers. The company will use the Ethereum blockchain network for the process.

Final Thoughts

The blockchain technology holds the key for a decentralized yet compelling future. Most of the hype around the blockchain is down due to the volatile nature of the crypto trade market. As people often confuse cryptocurrencies or Bitcoin with blockchain. The real implementation of the blockchain is not limited to token creation and digital money. It can be incorporated into real-world uses like the Agricultural sector and the healthcare sector.